Roy Hodgson admits that Wilfried Zaha has the 'X-factor', but insists that he alone cannot change Crystal Palace's fortunes.

The Eagles ace is set to return from injury to face Chelsea tomorrow (Saturday) at Selhurst Park, having missed several weeks with a knee injury picked up on the opening day of the season against Huddersfield Town.

But Hodgson says that while the Palace fans will rejoice at his return, he has moved to temper expectations that the 24-year-old will solve all of the struggling Eagles' troubles on his own.

"He has definitely got the X-factor," he said.

"He can dribble and beat people, not every player in the Premier League can do that.

"He has a special place in the hearts and minds of Palace fans, and they will feel more comfortable now that he is back and will believe with his ability, he can change a game and feel that he can turn a draw into a win, or a defeat into a draw.

"So I think there is a big psychological factor to him being back, but it would be wrong to put too much pressure on him at the moment, and if we are not careful, he will be trying too hard and trying to do it all by himself. When players do that, their own game starts to suffer.

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"He has got to be an important cog in a well-oiled machine and our job is to make sure the machine is well oiled enough to produce that X-factor."

Hodgson added that while he knows what Zaha can do and how he can affect a game, having briefly worked with him during his time as England boss and spent time on the training ground with the fans' favourite in recent weeks, he insists that it would be wrong to pin all hopes on Zaha.

"I have worked with him for two weeks on the training field," he said.

"For me to make ridiculously bold statements, you would need to ask me in a few months time.

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"He can change a game, he has got that ability and capability, I know that, but we have to be careful here.

"We have a lot of things to do here at Crystal Palace before I can be satisfied to say we are a good team, and we are difficult to beat and capable of winning games and doing what we need to do to get points.

Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson scratches his head at half time during the Premier League match between Manchester United and the Eagles. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

"To put that all on Wilfried Zaha, that would be totally wrong."

Hodgson did briefly work with Zaha during his time as England boss, having called him up to the senior squad for the first time in 2012, and the Palace ace featured in a friendly against Sweden while the Eagles were still in the Championship.

But after he made the move to Manchester United in 2013, Zaha only received one more call-up to the England team, playing in another friendly against Scotland before the Eagles man switched his international allegiance to the Ivory Coast last year.

Wilfried Zaha played for England at various youth levels, and twice for the senior national team. Photo: Nigel French/PA Wire.

At the time, Zaha's representative, Will Salthouse of Unique Sports Management, issued a statement to say it was the winger's personal choice and his right as a senior player to accept the opportunity to represent the country of his birth, and he has since said that he has no regrets over his decision.

And Hodgson has moved to explain why he didn't get another call up during his time as England manager after his second cap against Scotland.

"He was certainly in the squad that went to Sweden to open the stadium there. He was in good form for Palace at the time," he said.

Wilfried Zaha won his first England cap against Sweden during Roy Hodgson's time in charge of the national team. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

"After that he went to [Manchester] United and didn't really play for two years.

"Players prove themselves to be worthy at different moments in time. And a, there has to be a vacancy for them, b, they have got to stay fit and c, they have got to keep playing well.

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"Often what happens is when they could play, they are either unfit, or not playing well or not in the team and they get passed over, and by the time he is playing well again, then the boat has passed for that moment."

But Hodgson will hope that the boat has not passed for Palace's season and that Zaha can yet provide an anchor role in steering his side out of troubled waters to calmer seas.